Never Say Never – I’m Running A 5K

And by running I mean probably run-walking or walk-running or waunning. (Not even close to being as good as “Brangelina” as far as word mergers go is it?)

Never say never! Justin Beiber you wise soul. I’m fairly certain I said that I’d never run a 5k, but I am. I am incredibly excited and nervous. It might seem like a measly distance to some, but for me it’s a lot.

Over the past 5-8 years I’ve been plagued by some fairly serious joint pain. The truth is, I don’t talk about my joint pain on the blog often. It’s a pretty sensitive and depressing subject for me. Don’t worry, I’ve seen my doctor and had extensive testing done.

Although I love running, I’ve never done more than a kilometer or two without walking. I have a path by my house (that I just calculated the distance for) and it’s 5k. In the summer I regularly incorporate it into my workouts as a walk/run exercise.

I always thought races were off the table for me. I could never run the entire distance. Last week Chobani contact me with an offer to sponsor me and/or a reader in the Goodlife Marathon and the Sporting Life 10k. Obviously I was interested in neither and was happy to pass the entry on to a winning reader. But then I got an email back saying that Goodlife Marathon entry could be for the full, half, or 5k distance.

Hmmmmmm 5k you say?

I was in.

I wanted to race, I’ve always wanted to race. The starting line, the finish line, the race bib. I wanted all of it, even if it meant walking. Heck there’s nothing wrong with walking is there?!?!

The date of the race is Sunday May 6th and here’s my first training run:

I’m going to be keeping you updated over the next two weeks with my training. If you have any advice for me PLEASE leave it. Also please leave me stories about your first race (blog posts links much appreciated!)

One last important tidbit: the WINNER of the entry to the Sporting Life 10K is:

39 Responses to Never Say Never – I’m Running A 5K

So exciting! Good luck! Running is terrible on my joints too, so I usually avoid it. But this May, I am running two 5Ks, and I have to start training this week. I’ve ran 5Ks and 10Ks before, and my biggest advice is take walking breaks when needed, even if it’s just for 30 seconds. You don’t want to get too stubborn (ahem..like me) and injure yourself.

I believe in you girl! I just asked the wild world of Twitter and Facebook for advice leading up to my first ever 10km race this Sunday. I’m going to post all of the responses on my blog tomorrow – maybe their words of wisdom will be helpful for you too!

Yay, I hope you’ll enjoy your race! I did my very first race, which was also a 5k, almost exactly one year ago. Here’s the recap: http://sueintraining.wordpress.com/2011/05/08/race-recap-munich-airport-5k/
This year, I’m going to do the 10k distance at the same race. That’s farther than I’ve ever run, so I’m a little nervous.
Whatever happens on race day, just enjoy the experience and soak in the atmosphere.

Good for you! I ran my first 5k last spring and had so much fun that I ran 2 more before the summer was over. My best piece of advice: It’s okay to walk. It’s not a marathon and chances are good you’ll be running with people who have as little experience as you do. Listen to your body and take walking breaks if you need to, you can still get an great time at the end.

I think you’ll have fun! The one and only race I did was a 5k (here’s the recap: http://guessimarunner.com/2011/01/04/first-night-5k-recap/ ) and it was really fun. I was underprepared for it because I kind of lost my motivation to run a few weeks before the race, but I was running with a couple of friends so I had a good time. I set a goal before the race (to run the entire thing, even if it was slow) and felt so awesome when I met the goal! I gave up on running quite some time ago (never liked it), but rereading my recap kind of makes me want to start up again.

Morgan– we are so proud & inspired by you! What a great first step. The 5K is a very manageable distance and you’ll be in great company. We can’t wait to read along with your training these next few weeks and have you as our guest at the race. Hopefully this will be the first of many finish lines you’ll be crossing. Good luck to you, and Janice!

very proud of you, maybe next year I will join you! i am trying to want to do races and such, everyone always says: sign up for this or that and you will be motivated to train for it. Maybe its just nerves, but man, I have never thought I would want to run, bike or anything….maybe I should get hypnotized into wanting to do a marathon and then all I will want to do is train? haha. Oh and I love the “wuanning”, its what I usually do…could we also say rulking…hrmm…maybe not.

i’m doing my first race ever this weekend – an 8k! i haven’t stuck to my training plan quite as well as i should have, so i know that if all conditions are right, i CAN run the whole thing, but if anything if off, i’ll probably be run/walking too. i don’t care though! i am so excited!

This is so exciting! I am running the Goodlife Half that same day! I’ve done about a dozen races and my best piece of advice is to not go out fast! It’s very easy to get swept into the crowd when your adrenaline is pumping. Stick to your run-walk-run plan and it will be a success! I can’t wait to hear how it goes!

How exciting about your first race! I started running last July in preparation for a 5k that I ran in September, the Yorkville Run. I had so much fun and was instantly hooked on races. I just ran my first 10k yesterday, the Toronto Yonge St. 10k and I am running my first half marathon on May 6th in the Goodlife Half Marathon! (Maybe see you there!!) My advice would be to not do anything new on race day – make sure you’ve tested out your outfit, shoes, and pre-run food during training!
I didn’t write a full post on my 5k but I did for my 10k – http://lilsnowflakes.wordpress.com/2012/04/22/race-recap-the-toronto-yonge-street-10k/ Good luck and have fun!!!

Thank you sooo much for sharing this with us! I’m new to your blog and am so anxious to follow you as you prepare for your 5K. How exciting! I’ve never been in a race before but would love to someday. I also have knee issues so I can definitely relate. The video was a great touch btw…keep posting them Have fun!!

I am right there with you on the run/walk. I’ve been “running” for years and I cannot, for the life of me, do a 5K. I so want to. Every year I say I will. Maybe your recap of the race will give me the courage…